While Likud/Beitenu announced before general elections that control of the Ministry of Education would remain in its control, Yair Lapid is continuing to use the leverage of his combined 31 seats with Bayit Yehudi to gain control over the ministry. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu plans to have Minister of Education Gideon Saar continue in the post, but Lapid hopes to see Rabbi Shai Piron of his party in the position.
While he originally turned down the offer, Lapid has agreed to accept the finance portfolio, which puts Yesh Atid demands for the Finance Ministry to rest. This of course has compelled Bayit Yehudi leader Naftali Bennett to change his plans, for he expected the treasury post. Bennett will be minister of industry & trade, with a specially tailored expanded position which includes being a deputy prime minister.
However, despite Likud/Beitenu’s insistence that it is holding on to the educational portfolio, Lapid is not abandoning his efforts to pressure the prime minister into agreeing to his demands. For the prime minister, it is more complicated that fulfilling an election promise regarding the education portfolio, it is the realization that after the parties have signed on the dotted line he cannot face the Likud/Beitenu players and inform them that all ‘quality’ positions have been given out. Mr. Netanyahu is working to avoid a revolt within his own party.
Realizing the number of ministerial appointments remaining for Likud is few, what was believed to be a sure appointment, minister of defense to Moshe Ya’alon; a former IDF chief of staff, is now the subject of dispute. Dr. Yuval Steinitz, Tzachi Hanegbi and Silvan Shalom view themselves as suitable candidates as well. None of the others were IDF officers yet alone high-ranking officers.
It does appear that most of the deputy ministers will be from the Likud/Beitenu list in the hope of appeasing many disappointed ministerial hopefuls in the party.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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One Response
It would be great to have an orthodox rabbi as Education Minister again. Rabbi Yitzchak Levi served in that position in the 1990s. Zevulun Hammmer was another religious Jew who served in that position and while he was very learned I don’t think he was a rabbi.